The free agent market really doesn’t offer the Yankees a backup plan should Cliff Lee sign elsewhere. Lee is the only proven ace on the market, with every other starter being either a complimentary piece or an ace-like talent with significant injury concerns.

Jake Westbrook is back with St. Louis, Javier Vazquez is in Florida and Jon Garland is with the Dodgers.

Secondary pieces are coming off the board and the Yankees still have an obvious need for starting pitching. But they can’t put any sort of Plan B into action until they know what’s happening with Lee and Andy Pettitte. It’s not as if anyone who has signed already would have been a viable replacement for one of those two, anyway.